2008: Superintendent Harry J. Corbitt was appointed by Governor David Patterson on April 16, 2008 to be the 13th Superintendent of the State Police. Superintendent Corbitt returned to service with the State Police after retiring following 25 years of service. Superintendent Corbitt has the distinction of being the first African American in the agency’s history to obtain its highest rank.
Superintendent Corbitt joined the State Police on February 20, 1978 and served in Troop E, SP Academy and Division Headquarters before becoming the Troop Commander for Troop T in 1993. As a Staff Inspector, Superintendent Corbitt served as an advisor to the United States Department of Justice, developing manuals and training materials on Ethics and Integrity.
In 2001, he became Deputy Superintendent in charge of Internal Affairs and retired in 2004. During his tenure as Superintendent, he was known for traveling the state of New York to improve community relations and to educate citizens of the state. Superintendent Corbitt developed a suicide awareness and prevention program, a military and veterans assistance program, and improved upon the agency’s victim’s programs which included the formation of the Special Victims Unit.
Superintendent Corbitt expanded the Mobile Response Team (MRT) and made it a full time, full service operation and renamed the detail the Special Operations Response Team (SORT). Additionally, he is responsible for the purchase, distribution, and training of the Uniform Patrol Rifle Program.